WOUNDS IN PRUNING. 181 



ble is spared ; because, it is not so apt to 

 scale off as paint; nor, in case of the ne- 

 cessity of renewing- the plaister, does it re- 

 quire the pains of scraping and brushing the 

 edges, &c. for mouldiness never follows when 

 tar is applied. Coal-tar is to be preferred ; 

 it acquires a close, glossy skin, and is exceed- 

 ingly durable. 



We are not, however, to deviate from Mr. 

 Forsyth's directions of " preparing the tree 

 properly for its application, by cutting away 

 all the dead, decayed, and injured part, till 

 we come to the fresh, sound wood ; leaving 

 the surface of the wood very smooth, and 

 rounding off the edges of the bark with a 

 draw-knife or other instrument, perfectly 

 smooth, which must be particularly attend- 

 ed to/' 



And it is really astonishing what exertions 

 nature will make in the recovery of health 

 and wonted vigour, if this first trouble be fol- 

 lowed up with necessary care to prevent the 

 bad effects of lodging moisture, until the 

 wound is completely covered over with new 

 bark. And although the wound will un- 

 avoidably cause a blemish in the wood at the 



